Laguna Canyon Road: Protect & Connect

Project Overview

The Laguna Canyon Road: Protect & Connect project aims to improve safety for all users, enhance sustainability, and manage congestion along one of the only direct routes to Laguna Beach - the Laguna Canyon Road (LCR) corridor (SR-133). The project is focused on addressing safety concerns, plans to underground utilities, and considering multi-modal transportation options. This corridor provides residents, businesses, and visitors critical access to the city from Interstate 405 (I-405) and State Route 73 (SR 73) and serves as an evacuation route.

Features being considered include:

Underground utilities
Bikeways and pedestrian paths
Improved crossings
Signal enhancements
Enhanced transit and trolley stops
Native and low-water use landscaping

Project Goals

Improve safety by removing utility poles and undergrounding the overhead utility lines, which will eliminate the potential source of wildfire, improve overall aesthetics and remove obstacles to reduce collision potential.
Provide multi-modal improvements that will encourage use of the corridor by pedestrians, transit users and bicyclists of all ages and abilities.
Develop innovative solutions to improve traffic flow without adding roadway capacity.

Outreach Overview

Phase I Outreach Overview

Phase I of the Laguna Canyon Road: Protect & Connect project prioritized public engagement. The goal during this phase was to inform the community about the project and to gather input from residents, local businesses, community members, and out-of-town visitors on preliminary roadway improvement concepts, including an off-street bike path or on-street bike lanes. Feedback included general community preferences, concerns, and other suggestions for Laguna Canyon Road.

Phase I featured a range of outreach activities, including an online survey, six (6) pop-up events, multiple stakeholder meetings, door-to-door business outreach, and a community workshop. Different methods of collecting input were employed depending on the outreach setting. For instance, some of the stakeholder meetings and the community workshop involved a presentation of background and conceptual features via PowerPoint, followed by discussions where attendees shared their preferences, ideas, issues, and concerns. A complete summary of the in-person outreach can be downloaded at the above “Outreach Summary” button.

Throughout the outreach phase, an online survey remained active to gather demographic statistics about primary road users and to collect any open-ended thoughts about the project. The survey was open from the beginning of March through May 31, 2024. At closing, 2,672 responses were captured. A complete summary of the online survey can be downloaded at the above “Online Survey Results” button.

The City hosted a community workshop on May 7, 2024 to deliver a presentation and to discuss the Laguna Canyon Road project. More than 80 residents attended and provided feedback to the project team. A copy of the presentation and a recording of the meeting are available using the links below.

The Frequently Asked Questions document was created to address common questions heard during the public engagement process. the document is intended to clarify key issues, methodology and approach. The FAQ document is available for download by clicking the "Frequently Asked Questions" button above.

Phase II Outreach Overview

Phase II outreach is now underway. This phase will offer the opportunity to see and share thoughts on more specific design concepts were created from the cumulative feedback from Phase I.

Check this page often to learn about upcoming events and project updates. Bookmark this page and follow @lagunabeachgov on social media to get involved and stay up to date with the project.

History and Background

Laguna Canyon Road (State Route 133) is the only direct route from State Route 73 and Interstate 405 to access Laguna Beach. This heavily traveled corridor, particularly the 2.5-mile stretch from Canyon Acres Dr. to El Toro Rd., is used by pedestrians, cyclists, motorists, and public transit users. Safety concerns along the existing two-lane highway have made it a priority target for improvement projects over the last several years.

In 2014, the City of Laguna Beach led the SR133/Laguna Canyon Road Task Force to start a dialogue about Laguna Canyon Road and possible alternatives to improve safety, congestion and accessibility in the corridor. The task force was composed of City Officials, residents, Caltrans, and other stakeholders such as conservation groups who convened to discuss and evaluate numerous proposed alternatives. The Final Report was presented to the City Council on September 8, 2015. Since that time, project development has continued. Below is a project timeline showing past and proposed future milestones.

Project Timeline

Previous Milestones:

September 8, 2015 - Laguna Canyon Task Force's Final Report presented to City Council
June 13, 2017 - Award of contract to HDR for Project Study Report (PSR)
July 23, 2019 - City Council accepted the Wildfire Mitigation and Fire Safety Report
- Listed Laguna Canyon Road as a Long-Term project
- Directed staff to proceed with a Cost/Benefit Analysis for acquiring LCR
September 24, 2020 - Assembly Bill No. 2172 authorizing Route 133 relinquishment
September 21, 2021 - Cost/Benefit Analysis presented to City Council
September 27, 2022 - Caltrans approved the PSR
May 16, 2023 - Award of Contract to Mark Thomas & Company for Project Approval and Environmental Document (PA&ED) Phase
January 9, 2024 – City Council approved the action to proceed with relinquishment
March 2024 - Initiated Project Outreach

Advancing the Project:

Prepare Draft Alternatives: Spring/Summer 2024
Select Preferred Alternative: Summer/Fall 2024
Preliminary Engineering: Summer 2024-Early Winter 2026
Public Review & Final Environmental Document: Winter-Spring 2026

Project Boundaries

Project Documents

Resource Documents

Laguna Beach, CA

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